Ottawa Chiropractor Health and Wellness Blog

Natural ways to beat stress are important tools we can all use in our daily lives since crippling stress is something that has become way too common. It comes naturally with the high expectations that are put on each individual. In today’s society we are all expected to be working, educated and taking care of a family, while still holding it all together. No wonder most people feel stressed on a daily basis.

Stress is not an inherently bad thing. A little bit of stress can actually be quite good for us. It is when we are in a chronically stressed state that stress can have profound impacts on our body, our health and the way that we feel.

What is stress?

Stress is the way that the body responds to a threat of something that is overwhelming. It is a biological instinct to keep us alive. When our bodies sense a threat whether it is real or imagined it reacts by going into survival mode via the stress response. This response is mediated through a hormone known as cortisol that is produced by the adrenal glands in the body.

The adrenal glands are two small glands in the body that are located in our middle back on top of our kidneys. During times of stress the brain sends a message to the adrenal glands to produce a hormone known as cortisol. Cortisol helps us cope with stressful situations by giving us the resources that we need to deal with them. Our body cannot distinguish between stresses that are life threatening and those that are just overwhelming, This means that each time cortisol is produced the body is primed as if we are trying to navigate a life threatening situation.

Cortisol puts us into fight or flight state and affects every part of the body. It sends all of the energy to our heart and our muscles. It puts us into a hyper aware, hyper stimulated state. It also sends all of our energy away from our brains, our immune system and our digestive system. If this stress response is activated long term it can lead to health concerns from either constant stimulation or lack of stimulation. Some of these concerns include poor concentration, poor memory, frequent cold and sickness, indigestion, bloating, IBS, anxiety, high blood pressure and muscle tension. In addition it can also lead to depletion of the adrenal glands causing exhaustion and burnout.

How do we deal with stress?

As you can see stress has an incredibly profound and all encompassing impact on our bodies. However the truth is we cannot avoid stress. It has become ingrained in our lives as human beings. The goal when dealing with stress is decreasing the intensity that each stressor has on our body. This involves decreasing our stress levels and improving the way that we respond to stressful events. This can decrease the mental and physical impacts that stress has on our lives. We can’t always get rid of the stressors but we can work on modulating our responses to the stress – in the end the only thing we have control over is ourselves.

Ways of Coping with Stress?

• Mindfulness- this means being aware of you and your body When we are under chronic stress as an adaptive process we can often tune out what is happening in our bodies and how the stress is impacting our bodies both physically and emotionally. We often focus on just getting through the stressful event instead of recognizing how it is effecting us. By tuning back into yourself being aware of your body (physically and emotionally) can help you tune into where you are and whether your stress is helpful or hindering you. To a certain degree stress can be helpful for the body and encourage us to be productive and get things done. The goal with mindfulness is to figure out how stress is effecting your body and when it is more harmful than helpful and then try and keep your external stresses in a place where they are not harmful.

• Meditation is one way to practice mindfulness – it is one way of learning to cultivate attention and awareness in the body. It helps to bring you back into your body and reconnect to how stress is feeling physically and emotionally to you. Meditation comes in many forms but they all help to bring your attention out of the mind and into the body. This allows us time and space to relax and get some distance from our extreme emotions.

• Breathing is one exercise that can be used to decrease stress and bring the awareness back into your body. Paying attention to the breathe helps to regulate your nervous system. Some exercises that you can try include taking longer breathes. Inhale for 4 counts, hold the breathe for 4 counts, exhale for four counts, hold for four counts and repeat. You can also deepen this exercise by placing one hand over your heart and one over your belly. Each time you breathe in imagine that your lungs and ribs are expanding and each time you breathe out imagine your lugs and ribs are contracting. This helps bring the  breathe into the abdomen which helps relax the body instead of just breathing into the chest which exacerbates the fight or flight response. This simple exercise can be used at any time to help bring the body back into balance when stress is trying to push you into a dysfunctional or anxious state.

• Sleep - Getting a good nights sleep is very important. This is the time for you body to reset and process the events of the day. It gives space for your body and mind to replenish. Giving the body time to rest makes it easier for it to deal with the stresses that come about in the following day. Some tips to help improve sleep – have a consistent bed time, try and avoid caffeine in the evening and later afternoon, try and avoid screens at least 1 hour before bed, create an evening routine that helps you relax.

• Find ways to relax – find one thing each day that helps to bring the body out of the stressful state and into a relaxed one to help support its optimal functioning. Some of these things can include having a bath, doing a class such as yoga,  moving in someway daily, being in nature, sitting with a cup or tea, doing something that you love.

•  Eat foods that nourish your body – nutrient deficiencies, food sensitivities, and foods that promote inflammation can all impose stress on the body and enhance the impacts stress is having on our body.  Focus on eating a diet that is anti-inflammatory and supports optimal nutrient status. This includes eating whole foods, lots of fruits and veggies, protein and good fats. Good fats such as nuts and seeds, avocado and olive oil/coconut oil help to nourish our brains and are especially important in times of stress. Try and avoid stimulants that can exacerbate the symptoms of stress and anxiety.

• Supplement when necessary – supplements can be used to correct any nutrient deficiencies. During times of stress the body will have an increased demand for certain nutrients and this can lead to deficiencies. Check in with your health care practitioner to know which supplements would be most beneficial for you.

• Use the support of plants – adaptogens are a class of plants and herbs that literally help you to adapt. They act specifically on the adrenal glands nourishing them and helping them to respond to stressful situations. They can help us get through times of extreme stress or they can help us rebuild once we have hit a state of burnout. For more information of which adaptogens might be the best for you contact your naturopathic doctor.

*just because it is natural it doesn’t mean it is safe – always talk to your health care provider about which supplements and herbs would be the best for you.

• try physical therapy and the power of touch – physical therapies including acupuncture, cupping, massage, osteopathy and chiropractic. In addition to each of their won benefits they can also be used to help calm the body down through physical touch and ease tension/muscle pain in the body that is caused by stress. Both cupping and acupuncture are things that are offered by Naturopathic Doctors.